Sunday, 10 May 2015

Two stop strategy for Rosberg cements victory while Hamilton went for a three stop

(Pirelli Motorsport Media)

Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 Team’s Nico Rosberg took his first
victory of the 2015 season using a two stop strategy.

The German, who started
the race from pole position began the race on the White walled Medium compound
tyre before switching to another set of the new Medium compound tyre on lap 15
and then once again on lap 45 for a new set of Hard compound tyres.

World championship leader Lewis Hamilton on the other hand
opted for the theoretically faster three stop strategy. The double world champion
made his first stop for new Medium tyres on lap 13 before moving to the Hard
tyre on lap 32 and completing his final stint on the Medium tyre once again
from lap 51.

Seven of the twenty drivers on the grid decided to go for a
three stop strategy today in Barcelona where the temperatures both on the track
and in the air were through the roof. Speaking following today’s race, Pirelli
Motorsport Director Paul Hembery commented by saying:

‘Strategy was clearly at the forefront of the
Spanish Grand Prix, with a fascinating and complex battle between Mercedes and
Ferrari. The nominations we made opened up a number of different possibilities,
enabling each team to make the most of their potential. Despite the demanding
conditions of the Montmelo track and significant track temperatures, both
compounds performed perfectly, showed very little graining and no blistering,
helping every driver to maximise his chosen strategy. We look forward now to the
test, which will help us gather more data to shape future tyre development.’

The Scuderia Toro Rosso pairing of Max Verstappen and Carlos
Sainz completed both the most number of laps on the Hard compound tyre with 28
laps each under their belts while race winner Nico Rosberg completed 30
consecutively laps on the Medium compound tyre.

The team’s will remain at the Circuit Barcelona De Catalunya
for the opening two day in season test which gets underway on Wednesday
morning.